The continuing popularity of yoghurt - and in particular its health
benefits - has led to a raft of new product innovation as companies
in market sectors outside the dairy industry seek to capitalise on
yoghurt's reputation....
Yoghurts and spreads still account for the majority of the UK's
functional foods market, shows new research, and this is reflected
in advertising spend.
A link up between US space technologists and the leading
Swedish-Danish dairy firm Arla Foods could lead to new knowledge
about how to provide humans with calcium and yoghurt bacteria.
The proposal by the EU to redefine the rules governing what
constitutes as yoghurt has come up against a wall of opposition in
the UK. The two-fold proposal calls for only products that contain
live bacteria to be defined as yoghurt.
American dairy farmers who supply ingredients for yoghurt have been
angered by a petition seeking a change in the definition of the
product. They call it a "cynical attempt" to rob yoghurt of
raw ingredients.
The herbal extract aloe vera is increasingly being added to foods,
with the latest innovation from German dairy company Onken in the
form of an aloe vera-enriched low-fat yoghurt.
Leche Pascual looks set for conflict once again with its main
rivals after participating in a study designed to compare the
benefits of pasteurised and natural yoghurts.
Modern consumers are increasingly demanding products which offer
both health benefits and convenience, and food manufacturers have
been quick to respond with a variety of dairy products.
Latest research into the beneficial impact of peptides in fermented
milk might have on lowering consumer's blood pressure brings good
news for manufacturers of drinking yoghurts.
Arla Foods has launched two new flavours for its Yoggi Yalla
yoghurt drink, the leader of the fast-growing Swedish market. But
the company also faces a lawsuit over its delay in marketing
products containing the sweetener tagatose.
Danone might have failed to prevent Leche Pascual calling its
long-life desserts 'yoghurts' but the French group has successfully
prevented the company from registering with the Spanish yoghurt
producers' association...
French food giant Danone is believed to be interested in St Ivel,
the yoghurts division of the UK food group Uniq (formerly Unigate),
reports French financial paper Les Echos.
